Does Ben Jerrys own any registered or pending patents or copyrights material to the franchise?
Ben_Jerrys Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
icate that your Shop will be doing business under the trade name "Ben & Jerry's" provided that you clearly identify yourself as the owner and operator of the Shop and properly identify the legal name under which you (or your business entity) will be acting.
ITEM 14 PATENTS, COPYRIGHTS, AND PROPRIETARY INFORMATION
Patents and Copyrights
We do not own any right in or to any currently registered or pending patents or copyrights that are material to the franchise. However, we claim common law copyright protection for the Manual for the Ben & Jerry's System and our other forms and materials. We also claim proprietary rights in the confidential information and trade secrets contained in the Manual for Ben & Jerry's Shops.
Confidential Manual
After you and your manager complete Scoop U Training to our satisfaction, we will provide you with access, via electronic media, for the term of your franchise. The Manual will be provided through electronic files. We will provide you with the Manual, as well as other instructional materials, through electronic media, including the Internet or the Ben & Jerry's Extranet. You must treat the Manual, any other materials created for or approved for use in the operation of your Shop, and the information contained in them, as confidential, and must use reasonable efforts to maintain this information (both in electronic and written format) as proprietary and confidential. You must not copy, download, print or otherwise reproduce these materials or otherwise make them available to any unauthorized person. The Manual will remain our sole property. You must keep it accessible only in a secure place on the Shop premises or at the office which supports the Shop.
The Manual contains standards, methods, policies, guidelines and procedures, some of which are mandatory and others of which are suggestions. We may revise the contents of the Manual periodically. You must ensure that the version of the Manual to which you refer is the most current version. If there is a dispute as to the contents of the Manual, the terms of the master version, which we maintain at our home office, will control.
Confidential Information
You must not, during or after the term of the agreements you execute, divulge or use for the benefit of anyone else any confidential information concerning the System and the methods of operation of the Shops.
Source: Item 14 — PATENTS, COPYRIGHTS, AND PROPRIETARY INFORMATION (FDD pages 65–66)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Ben Jerrys's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, Ben Jerrys does not own any registered or pending patents or copyrights that are material to the franchise. However, Ben Jerrys does claim common law copyright protection for the Manual for the Ben & Jerry's System and other forms and materials. Ben Jerrys also asserts proprietary rights in the confidential information and trade secrets contained within the Manual for Ben & Jerry's Shops.
After franchisees and their managers complete Scoop U Training, Ben Jerrys will provide access to the Manual via electronic media for the term of the franchise. The Manual is delivered through electronic files and other instructional materials via the Internet or the Ben & Jerry's Extranet. Franchisees must treat the Manual and all materials related to the operation of their shop as confidential and must make reasonable efforts to keep this information proprietary, whether in electronic or written format.
Franchisees are prohibited from copying, downloading, printing, or reproducing these materials, or making them available to unauthorized individuals. The Manual remains the sole property of Ben Jerrys and must be kept in a secure location on the shop premises or at the supporting office. The Manual contains standards, methods, policies, guidelines, and procedures, some of which are mandatory and others are suggestions, and Ben Jerrys may revise the contents periodically. Franchisees must ensure they are using the most current version of the Manual, with the master version maintained at Ben Jerrys's home office controlling in case of disputes.
During and after the franchise term, franchisees must not disclose or use any confidential information about the System and shop operations for the benefit of others, except to employees who need access to it to operate the shop. Any information designated as confidential by Ben Jerrys is deemed confidential.